Frankenstein Play (Adapted by Philip Pullman) PDF

 OXFORD PLAYSCRIPTS ran 1 Marv ShllleY adapted by Philip Pullman OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 3 OXFORD VNTVERSITY P!UlSS Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP Oxford University Press is a...

 OXFORD PLAYSCRIPTS ran 1 Marv ShllleY adapted by Philip Pullman OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 3 OXFORD VNTVERSITY P!UlSS Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research. scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide in Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto Wic:h offices in Argentina Austria Bl'azil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Ponugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trade mark of Oxford University Press in the UK and in certain other countries This adaptation of Frankenstein © Philip Pullman 1990 Activity section© Oxford University Press 2003 The moral rigbcs of the aut,hors have been assened Database right Oxford University Pi:ess (maker) This edition first published 2003 All rights reserved. No pare of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted. in any form or by any means. without the prior pennission in writi ng of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, or under terms agreed with the approp1iate reprographics rights organization. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above You must not circulate this book in any other binding or cover and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer All rights whatsoever in this play are strictly reserved and application for performance should strictly be made for commencement of rehearsal to: Rights Department, Education Division, Oxford University Press, Great Clarendon Street, Ox.ford, OX2 6DP. No perfonnance may be made unless a licepce has been obtained and no alterations may be made on the title or the text of the play without rhe author's prior written consent. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Data available ISBN 978 0 19 831498 1 iO 39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 Printed in China by Leo Paper Products Ltd Acknowledgements The Publisher would like to thank the following for permission to reproduce photographs: Hulton Archive: page 62; Polka Children's Theatre: page 72 (both.). lllustrations are by Jonathon Heap. Cover image © AF archive/Alamy The Publisher would like to thank Jenny Roberts for writing the Activities section. Recommended Edition Mary Shelley, Frankenstein. Ox.ford World's Classics, OUP, 2008  contents General Introduction 4 What the AdaPter savs 5 A Note on sta9in9 6 (/) t-' z~ Characters 8 f-, z 0 The PlaY 10 () ACtiVitieS 57 8 ·µ.l-z f--, (/) z~ ~ z ,0:: ~.r.. 3  Generat Introduction With a fresh, modem look, this classroon1-friendly series boasts an exciting range of z authors - from Pratchett to Chaucer - whose works have been expertly adapted by 0....... such well-known and popular writers as Philip Pullman and David Calcutt. ~ (J Many teachers use Oxford P/ayscr£pts to study the format, style, and structure of ;:::i A playscripts with their students; for speaking and listening assignments; to initiate 0 discussion of relevant issues in class; to cover Drama as part of the curriculum; as an 0:: i-< introduction to the novel of the same title; and t0 introduce the less able or willing to z i-, pre-1914 literature. At the back of each Oxford Playscript, you will find a brand new Activity section, which not only addresses the points above, but also features close text analysis, and activities that provide support for underachieving readers and act as a springboard for personal writing. Many schools will simply read through the play in class with no staging at all, and the Activity sections have been written with this in mind, with individual activities ranging from debates and designing campaign posters to writing extra scenes or converting parts o.f the original novels into playscript form. For those of you, however, who do wish to take to the stage, we have included, where necessary, 'A Note on Staging-' - a section dedicated to suggesting ways of staging the play, as well as examining the props and sets you may wish to use. Above all, we hope you will enjoy using Oxford Playscripts, be it on the stage or in the classroom. 4 What the AdaPter savs Frankenstein is a story about ·what it means to be human. One of the things that makes us human (perhaps the thing) is language, and the Monster's increasing command of language is one of the things which any production needs to bring out. In the book, the Monster himself tells a lot of the story. He tells how he finds the cottage in the forest, and hides nearby, listening to the family through the wall and learning, little by little, how to understand them. In a play, though, it is not possible to show things happening gradually over a long period. You have to find dramatic moments, single incidents that arise from what's gone before and set the course for what will happen next. So, in Act 3, the Monster is already able to speak at least as well as Frankenstein. His long speeches are very important, and they should be spoken clearly, passionately, and powerfully, as a brilliant lawyer speaks in court. If the actor playing the Monster has gained the audience's sympathy in the previous Acts, they will listen to the speeches with close attention. Something I wanted to get away from in this play was the lurching, lumpish monster, hands outstretched, that everyone can imitate jokingly. Mary Shelley, in the novel, stresses the Monster's athleticism and speed, and after all Frankenstein created him to be powerful and active. If the Monster looks as ugly as a corpse, but moves with the grace and energy of a dancer or gymnast, the effect is electric. Literally! The final section, with the Monster trying to bring the Bride to life and Frankenstein destroying it, and the other characters dying, must not be taken slowly. The sections must follow each other almost too swiftly for thought, as in a dream, otherwise the tension goes out of it and all the corpses piling up look merely funny. One major change I made was to have the blind person., whom the Monster tries to befriend, a young woman instead of an old man. In the book, there are three people in the cottage: Felix, Agathe, and their blind father. You might feel that in making this change, 1 was being sexist, and wanting to exploit the contrast between a powerful male monster and a frail, helpless female. On the other hand, you might feel that I was provoking a more interesting role for an actress in a st01y where women have otherwise very little to do. I know which I think I was doing. Philip Pullman 5  A Note on sta9in9 costumes and ProPs Props you may need include: Frankenstein: a heavy coat. Clerval: a heavy (over-)coat; a rucksack. Elizabeth: a bom1et; a cloak; a portable lamp. z Felix: a canvas bag; a 'dead rabbit'; a musket, a ranvod, shot, and 0 r:a powder. f-, 0 Agathe: a basket of mushrooms. z who believes that his work will improve the world Clerval the same age as Frankenstein; realistic and humorous, he is impressed by his friend's achievements but anxious about their effects Landlady middle-aged, probably, but it doesn't matter Elizabeth a year or two younger than Franken stein; she is devoted to his father and to William, and she loves Frankenstein without understanding him The Monster should look hideous - he is made of corpses, after all; very strong (I) and agile, and, although when he first comes to life he cannot ;z: t.:.l n1ove easily, it makes him much more impressive in the later Acts :.:: if he is graceful and powerful and docs not lurch about cJumsily; :z < his voice should be impressive ~ :.:.. Felix young, quick-tempered, fiery; he and Agathe are political refugees Agathe blind, but she should move about the room as easily as a sighted person; she knows the room well, knows where everything is; it is when she first becomes aware that something is wrong that she begins to look vulnerable Ghost of William best played in a dead white mask, to give the effect of something or someone not quite alive The Monster's should be as hideous as the Monster is; when he first sees her, he Bride is shocked Servant male 8  FRANKENSTEIN CHARACTERS '°  Pro1ogue The Arctic. A landscape of bright snow and ice. Enter Captain Walton, clothed in furs. He speaks quietly, thoughtfully, as if recollecting a deep experience. Captain Walton Some time ago, I had the command of a ship on an expedition to the Arctic Circle. We sailed further north than anyone had ever gone before, and then there came a day when we could gc no further, because the ice had closed us in. Weeks went by; months passed, and still we couldn't move. Strange things happen to your mind in those regions of eten1al snow. The sailors began to report seeing things, impossible things, and hearing voices in the empty air - one voice like someone crying in pain or anguish, another voice that was deep and harsh and n1.o nstrous, howling of revenge; I began to worry that they'd go mad with fear, crazy with isolation; I began to suspect that there were ghosts in the air) evil spirits behind the bright light glaring on the snow... And then I saw it myself, and I could doubt no longer. In the distance, a sledge was moving across the ice, pulled by a team of dogs, and driving it was a creature like a man, but huge and hideous beyond belief. And pursuing it - always in pursuit but never catching up - was a man on foot. We watched from the deck, the sailors and I, and then the man fell down and lay still on the snow. I sent out a party to bring him in. He told us that his name was... Frankenstein. We laid him in my cabin and looked after him, and presently he'd recovered enough to tell us his story. And a strange one 1t was... He exits quietly. As he goes off, the light fades and the curtain rises to show Frankenstein's room in lngolstadt for Act One. 10  Act 1 Frankenstein's room. It has high, arched windows thmugh which can be seen mountains and forest. At the moment, moonlight is shining through. The light is dim and flickers as clouds pass in front of the moon. Sinister music plays. Then a hand reaches down from above, as iffrom the roof, and puZls the window open from the outside. A second later the shape of a man - Frankenstein - is seen to climb athletically down the outside and in through the window. He brings with him a wire) which seems to be attached to sornething up on the roof Because of the dim light in the room it is impossible to be certain....;z; what he is doing. ri:i f-- (/) He leans out of the window and calls up softly. zri:i ~ Frankenstein Clerval! Are you staying up there all night? z < There is a scra.mbling sound offstage, as if the other person is not ~ i:i.. sure of his footing. Clerval {Off] I can't find the right place - ah, here it is - where the devil do I put my foot? A leg can be seen waving uncertainly about, feeling for a foothold. Frankenstein takes it and guides it to safety. A moment la.ter, Clerval appears in the window and jumps down to join Frankenstein. They are both £n their early twenties: Frankenstein intense, poet:ic; Clerval stout, cheeiful, matter-of-fact. Frankenstein lights a la.mp. The room is an odd mixiure of shabby sitting-room and cluttered laboratory. Phials and bottles of chemicals and prese1-ved specimens of various kinds line the shelves. A large, electrical-looking machine stands in the comer. On a bench at the back lies something - obviously the Monster - covered by a sheet. 11  Clerval rubs his hands with the c-0ld and looks around curiously. So this is where you lurk, Frankenstein! D'you know, the other, students are convinced you're a wizard? Frankenstein A wizard! Why's that? Both men have heavy coats on. Clerval is carrying a rucksack, which he takes ojf and drops on the jloor. Frankenstein reacts with nervous anger. Frankenstein Don't drop that! Clerval I'm sorry. What's in it? It feels like several pounds of meat. r Frankenstein Well, it's... just that. Several pounds of meat. u < Clerval I hope it tastes good. Where are you going to cook it? Don't you have a fire in here? It feels as cold as it does outside. Colder, if anything. Frankenstein is busy adjusting the wire he has brought in, securing it to brackets around the walls, and leading it to the bench. Frankenstein No. No fire. I keep it cold on purpose - it's the only way to preserve my speci.tnens... I don't notice it any more. Hold this, would you... Gives the end of the wire to Clerval, then goes bad~ and props the window open. Clerval You're not going to leave it open? We'll freeze to death, man! Frankenstein You'll get used to it. The only problem comes when you have to do delicate work with your hands... There. That should fix it. He stands back, surveying the arrangement of the wire. Clerval Remarkable. Extraordinary. A phenomenon. I congratulate you, Frankenstein. Now what the devil's it all about? You bring me clambering over the rooftops carrying our next week's suppers in a rucksack; suppers which, by the way, you intend to eat raw, since you don't go in for lighting fires; you fix a length of copper wire to the highest point of the house, ahd 12  trail it all the way down here and leave me holding the end of it - what's it all about, Frankenstein? Frankenstein My dear fellow! Let me take it from you... Takes the end of the wire and fastens it io a complicated piece of apparatus near the bench. There. Now you won't explode. Clerval steps away hastily. Clerval Explode? Frankenstein A joke. [Solemnly] Ha ha ha. Clerval Oh, a joke! I see. Ha ha. E- u < Frankenstein Sit down, Clerval, there's a good man. If you really want a fire, I suppose lighting one just this once won't make any difference. And to tell the truth, I feel like celebrating. D'you think there's going to be a storm? z Clerval A storm? Oh, bound to be. He sits in an annchair, then sits upright quickly and feels behind him. He brings out a human thigh-bone from behind the cushion and stares at it with distaste. Last night's supper? Or this morning's breakfast? Frankenstein So that's where it got to... He takes it, puts it on a shelf, and brings dou-n a bottle of wine from which lze pulls the cork by hand. Frankenstein There's a glass on the floor beside the chair, Clerval. I've only got the one. We'll share it. Clerval finds it. It's dirty and covered in dust. Frankenstein rubs it on his sleeve before pouring the wine in. Frankenstein Your good health! Drinks deeply, fills the glass again, walks upstage, leaving Clerval waiting for his turn. 13  Yes, if we're lucky tonight and it storms, and if my wire does the job it's supposed to, and if... well, my dear fellow, we're on the threshold of a new age. Clerval You don't say? Frankenstein T here's no harm in telling you. It's bound to come out sooner or later, and you're an intelligent man. You'll understand... Clerval Kind of you. The wine, Frankenstein... Frankenstein Ah! Forgive me. Pours another glass, takes it to Clerval. f-. Yes - my work. So they call n1e a wizard, do they? Perhaps u they're not far wide of the mark. I expect two hundred years < ago they'd have burnt me at the stake. Clerval Not a bad idea. Then we could have warmed ourselves up... z ,_. Rubs his hands, shivers... ~ t""' (/) zo:.i Frankenstein All right, all right. I'll light the fire. z~< He crosses to the grate. As he does so, there is a distant rumble of thunder. He stops and looks out, with an expression of satisfaction. 1Z u, Hear that? It's way over the mountains just yet, but it's on its way. ,.. He stoops, strikes a flint and steel, and starts a fire in the grate. Clerval huddles closer to it as 1'rankenstein goes to the window to peer out. Frankenstein Another hour or so, I should think. You can see the lightning playing around the peaks. 14 Clerval AU right, let me.guess. Storn1 - lightning - wire - electricity. Frankenstein Very good! Clerval Electricity... Umm... Magnetism? You've invented a way of making magnets? Frankenstein Nothing like it. He comes to sit in the other chair~ takes the wine glass and fills it again. Frogs' legs. Clerval And the same to you. Or is that the menu? Frankenstein No! An Italian called Galvani - heard of him? Clerval I'm a philosopher, not a musician. All Italian composers sound the same to me. Frankenstein Nothing to do with music. He was a scientist, Clerval. A z...... natural philosopher. He was dissecting a frog one day, and he iJJ r< found that the nerve in the leg responded to electricity. It (/) twitched when a current passed through it. z ~ ~ Clerval Now I have heard about that, come to think of it. He thought z <.z there was a kind of animal electricity, didn't he? And is that !I; what you're working on? Frankenstein More or less. But there's no such thing as animal electricity - t. '() it's all one. The same force flows in your nerves as in the frog's, and the very sa1ne force flows through the lightning... Did I ever tell you how I first realized what my life's work was to be? I was fourteen years old, at home in Geneva, on a night like this - a storm was threatening. They rise very quickly in the mountains there. Outside our front door, about twenty yards away, stood a great old oak tree. It had been there for three hundred years at least, and it was still green and strong. I'd climbed it, I'd sheltered under it, I'd carved my initials on the trunk... and just as the storm was at its height, I opened the door to look at the lightning. You've never seen such a storm! The tree was lit up bright, bright green by flash after 15  flash, and the thunder was exploding around the house like artillery fire. Then without any warning the tree was engulfed in flame. A colossal blaze shot right out of it, all in a moment., and dazzled me so I could hardly see... When I opened my eyes again, only a 1noment later, the tree was gone. There was nothing there at all but a charre4, smoking stump. That great living thing, smashed to atoms in an instant! And I thought: the power that can do that is the power of life and death. I'll harness it. I'll study it and master it and make it work for mankind. Clerval I see. And now you've done it?....; f-, Frankenstein Nearly. Nearly, Clerval! u as hideous as 50  the Monster, in fact. She is dressed in a long white gannent like a shroud. Her eyes are closed: she is not yet alive. As the Monster looks at her, he shudders and turns away for a moment; but then he makes himself look back. Monster Beautiful... not like a human being. But we have our own beauty, she and I. Soon you'll wake up, my bride... soon we'll be together... Clerval A female- Clerval comes to look, and recoils in horror. Monster A companion! Don't worry, man. We'll go off into the wilderness together, we'll live in peace and kindness - Clerval And what'll you do then? Breed? He springs LO the electrical machine and tears out a handful of wires before J.he Monster can stop him. z I'll never let it happen! The M ons ter roars with anger then leaps on Clerval and pulls him away jrorn the machine, but Clerval pulls free and grabs another wire. He is about to tear it loose when the M onster strikes him down. He falls with a cry. Clerval Aaaggghhhh! The loose end of the wfre is still in his hand. The M onster strikes him again and again, until he is unconscious. Monster Murderer! Destroyer! My bride - you'ye killed my bride - W'hen Clerval is still, the Monster seizes the wire from his hand and stands in helpless agony, looking at the Bride and the loose wires that trail from the ·machine. Monster You shall live! You shall live! Feverishly he tn·es to connect the wires up again. Where do they go? Where do they go? Frankenstein, Frankenstein! 51  Suddenly the door bursts open. Elizabeth is standing there, together with a Servant holding two pistols. Elizabeth There - [gasping with shock as she sees the Monster} ahhh! Servant In God's name, my lady - what is it? Elizabeth He's killed Monsieur de Clerval - shoot! Shoot! The Servant aims both pistols at the Monster and fires. The Monster staggers back with a cry. Monster Aaaagggghhhh! Elizabeth runs to the body of Clerval and kneels beside him. The Servant tries hascil,y to reload - but ihe Monster recovers himself and leaps on him. Servant No! No - Monster All killers - all destroyers - every one of you - He strikes the Servant down as he did Clerval. Pausi'ng only to stare down at Elizabeth with feverish hatred, he springs back to the Bride and attaches the last w£re to her head. Monster My bride - awake! Awake! He starts to turn the handle of the great machine. Elizabeth watches in horror. Elizabeth No! Don't do it. The terminals begin to spark and an electrical hum fills the air. Faster and Jaster, the Monster turns the wheel, groaning with effort. The electrical noise increases, sparks fly, but the Bride does not move. Monster She's not moving - she's not coming alive - they've destroyed you! - No - wait - another wire - Still turning the wheel with one hand, he reaches down and picks up the last loose wire. He woks with desperate urgency to see where it goes, then lets go of the wheel, which continues to turn of its own accord with the momentum, and bends down to slip his arm under her shoulders. He l{fts her up, with the wire in his other hand - 52  brings the wire down to touch her heart - and suddenly she convulses into life with a terrifying scream. E lizabeth Ohno! No! She crouches in fear as the Monster and his Bride cling together in a desperate embrace, surrounded by sparks and a powerful humming and crackling. Monster [Howling] Live! Live! The Bride cr£es oui. Suddenly the door is flung open. Frankenstein stands there, looking around with horror. Franken stein Clerval! Oh no - Elizabeth! r' Elizabeth Victor - stop them! Stop them! u < Frankenstein leaps to the machine. The Monster, still holding the Bride, cannot stop him as he pulls out handfuls of wires, scauen·ng sparks everywhere and making the strange light from the machine surge, fade, and flicker. -z ; IJ f- r/) Monster No! No - she's mine - she's alive - z ;.tl ::.: The Bride suddenly throws her arrns up straight, her fingers z clutching at the air, and then falls lifeless in his anns. < ~ ~ Frankenstein Never! She'll never live now! Monster, what have you done? The Monster looks down at her with horror and then lowers her gently on to the bench. M onster What have I done, you say? Nothing - compared to what I'm going to do... Before Fra nkenstein can swp him, the Monster leaps wwards Elizabeth and seizes her by the throat. Elizabeth No! Help - Victor - Frankenstein Put her down! Don't do it - The Monster, with horrible snarls of rage, strangles her and drops her lifeless on the floor~ then stands laughing as Frankenstein throws himself to his knees beside her. 53  EPil09Ue Enter Captain Walton dressed as in the Prologue. During Walton's speech, the lights slowly fade up to the same intense brightness as they reached during the Prologue. Captain Walton So that was the story Frankenstein told me. When he came to the end, he fell back exhausted, near to death. I left him in the care of one of my men, and went out on deck to breathe the µ.l cold air and think for a while about the incredible things I'd ::i heard. But I hadn't been there for long when there was a cry c.? 0 from !below. I ran down to the cabin- and saw the Monster...l..... crouching on the window-ledge. I shrank away in fear, but the c.. ill Monster didn't move - for Frankenstein himself lay dead below him. The effort of telling his story had been too much. The creature looked at me and said 'It's ended, then. It's over.' I said 'And what will you do now?' He looked out at the waste of snow and ice, and said, 'I shall go north until I can go no further, and then I'll set fire to my sledge and lie down in the flames until my bones have turned to ash. They tell me that human beings have something called a soul that lives on after their bodies die. I hope I have no soul. All I want now is oblivion... ' Then he turned and leapt down on to the ice, and drove his sledge away at a furious pace. A minute later he had vanished in the sunlight and the silence. For a moment there £s bright light - and then darkness falls at once. ;Ji~:;;~~· ,...,,... -.J·. 0- - _.,H4... *'· -."".- ,.., ~ : ,. _. w. -.. J"' ~~ 55  EPil09Ue Enter Captain ~Valton dressed as £n the Prologue. During Walton's speech) the lights slowzy fade up to the sarne intense brightness as they reached during the Prologue. Captain Walton So that was the story Frankenstein told n1e. When he came to the end, he fell back exhausted, near to death. I left him in the care of one of my men, and went out on deck to breathe the cold air and think for a while about the incredible things I'd heard. But I hadn't been there for long when there was a cry from below. I ran down to the cabin - and saw the l\1onster crouching on the window-ledge. I shrank away in fear, but the Monster didn't move - for Frankenstein himself lay dead below him. The effort of telling his story had been too much. The creature looked at me and said 'It's ended, then. It's over.' I said 'And what will you do now?' He looked out at the waste of snow and ice, and said, 'I shall go north until I can go no further, and then I'll set fire to my sledge and lie down in the flames until my bones have rurned to ash. They tell me that human beings have something called a soul that lives on after their bodies die. I hope I have no soul. All I want now is oblivion... ' Then he turned and leapt down on to the ice, and drove his sledge away at a furious pace. A minute later he had vanished in the sunlight and the silence. For a moment there is bright light - and then darkness falls at once. :::.;;..~~ l(#;... ,..,4-:_ ~ --~ 55 (/).a...... t""..... >..... t"" u < 0 - -~ 4~:...;;;. 56  JSBN 978-0· 19·831498· 1 9 l~J1JJ llsl 31